Nettle Wine's Left Side
by potterlife714
Summary: “Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind.” Ah, those words he had written all those years ago. How he had been so sure of himself. Sure that nobody could ever, ever crack his code. But she did. She always did. ss/hg very minor fluff. enjoy


**a/n: Okay, here's my first ss/hg fic. I wouldn't call it dark, exactly, but you won't find much fluff here. **

**I'm not exactly sure where the idea for this story really came from. I guess I was just rereading Sorcerer's/Philosopher's Stone ( as I do a lot : ) ) and I saw the riddle Snape left. Maybe that, with the massive amount of ss/hg I've been reading lately sparked the idea : ) . **

**Anyway, enough of my rambling. Enjoy the story and leave a review if you feel inclined to do so. : ) **

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Nettle Wine's Left Side

"_Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind."_

Ah, those words he had written all those years ago. How he had been so sure of himself. Sure that nobody could ever, ever crack his code. _He_ had created it, after all. And nobody could match him on that intellectual level that he fancied himself so alone on.

But she did.

And he was no longer alone, in more ways than one.

"_Two of us will help you, whichever you would find. One among us seven will let you move ahead. Another will transport the drinker back instead."_

Yes, she had helped him. Turned his entire life around and suffered with him. Pulled him out of the downward spiral that had been his life since_ she_ died. Her, the one he had grieved over for twenty years.

Though she was dead, her beautiful memory lived on in his mind. It swirled around, mixed with all the regret, shame, and loss over what could never have been. But not now. Not anymore.

Everything was different. All because of her.

She had allowed him, forced him to get on with his life; to stop obsessing over what never was and really never could have been. But the swirling memories, so similar to before… He had wanted her. It seemed as if she would never want him back.

But that wasn't true.

"_Two among our number hold only nettle wine. Three of us are killers, waiting hidden in line."_

Again, he marveled at how the words he wrote so long ago were still relevant today. With her. She was kind, caring, loving…everything that he had never had in life.

She was his nettle wine. Always there when he needed her. Sometimes, simply for sport. Others, because he needed her to soothe the pain. Oh, how he was familiar with this.

He was her poison, her killer. He didn't understand why she willfully chose to stay, knowing full well that he might turn at any moment and hurt her. He could leave. Or simply shut himself back into the dark four-walled chamber he had locked himself into in earlier years when things became too horrible to bear.

He knew how horrible a person he was. Much of what he had done in the past was unforgivable.

She had forgiven him, accepted him as he was and did not, like so many other in his life, use him for her own personal gain or benefit. He was never a pawn in the bigger scheme of her life. They were equals. Severus had never experienced a life such as this before.

"_First, however slyly the poison tries to hide, you will always find some on nettle wine's left side."_

He had tried to change for her, yes. But she had not allowed it. She wanted him exactly the way he was, which was difficult for him to understand.

In the beginning, he had feared, everyday, that she would leave him. He did not think that he could survive another loss so great in his life. He had endured already the pain of one hundred men's lives.

Yet, she was still there, with him. Never wanting to leave.

Neither would he. She was his savior. He, quite literally, owed her his life. She dragged him out of the deep dark pit he was falling into and brought him into the light that was her own life.

He'd never leave. There, by her side is where he would be forever. The poison standing dark and intimidating next to the small, innocent nettle wine. Just the way they both preferred.

Who would have ever guessed, all those years ago, that the words he had written as an obstacle to be crossed would be so potent and even more meaningful today. It seemed fitting to him that she would be the one to overcome it then, and again, now. It was her way, he decided, to break into his life and prove that he was not alone.

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**a/n: whoo, there it is. man, I never thought that ending would be so difficult to get right. I hope it's alright. It isn't the entire riddle, but the rest of if was pretty much impossible to relate back to Snape and (I hope you figured it out by now, even if you didn't see it in the summary) Hermione. : ) . Sorry it's so short, also. I'm still getting back into the rhythm of writing for fanfiction. **

**Well, thank you so much for reading and reviews are always welcome! : )**


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